Citation Nr: 9928153
Decision Date: 09/29/99 Archive Date: 10/12/99
DOCKET NO. 98-16 361 ) DATE
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On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Jackson,
Mississippi
THE ISSUE
Entitlement to service connection for residuals of left leg
injury.
REPRESENTATION
Appellant represented by: American Red Cross
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD
M.G. Mazzucchelli, Counsel
REMAND
The veteran had active duty from October 1976 to October
1979. The veteran has requested a hearing before the Board
of Veterans' Appeals. He failed to report for a video
conference hearing scheduled in February 1999. To ensure
full compliance with due process requirements, the case is
REMANDED to the regional office (RO) for the following
development:
The RO should schedule a hearing before a
traveling section of the Board in
Jackson, Mississippi.
Thereafter, the case should be returned to the Board, if in
order. The Board intimates no opinion as to the ultimate
outcome of this case. The appellant need take no action
unless otherwise notified.
The appellant has the right to submit additional evidence and
argument on the matter or matters the Board has remanded to
the regional office. Kutscherousky v. West, 12 Vet. App. 369
(1999).
This claim must be afforded expeditious treatment by the RO.
The law requires that all claims that are remanded by the
Board of Veterans' Appeals or by the United States Court of
Appeals for Veterans Claims for additional development or
other appropriate action must be handled in an expeditious
manner. See The Veterans' Benefits Improvements Act of 1994,
Pub. L. No. 103-446, § 302, 108 Stat. 4645, 4658 (1994),
38 U.S.C.A. § 5101 (West Supp. 1999) (Historical and
Statutory Notes). In addition, VBA's Adjudication Procedure
Manual, M21-1, Part IV, directs the ROs to provide
expeditious handling of all cases that have been remanded by
the Board and the Court. See M21-1, Part IV, paras. 8.44-
8.45 and 38.02-38.03.
BETTINA S. CALLAWAY
Member, Board of Veterans' Appeals
Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 1991 & Supp. 1999), only a
decision of the Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to
the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. This
remand is in the nature of a preliminary order and does not
constitute a decision of the Board on the merits of your
appeal. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (1998).